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On the special occasion of Sunil Gavaskar’s 72nd Birthday, Let’s take a peek at some unknown facts about him.

Sunil Gavaskar affectionately known as ‘The Little Master’ among the admirers of the sport is regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the world. The former right-handed batsman and Indian Captain had a historic career in which he went on to score 10,000 + Test runs for the country.

One of the greatest batsmen to have graced the game, Sunil Gavaskar went on to play 125 Tests and 108 ODIs during his long illustrious career. The former Indian opener was also an integral member of India’s 1983 World Cup Winning Team. He has also led Team India across formats and captained the Men in Blue to a title victory in the World Championship of Cricket in 1985.

Gavaskar was the first cricketer in history to surpass the 10,000 marks in the longest format. He achieved the feat in his 124th Test on March 7, 1987. He has also held the record of most Test Centuries (34) for almost two decades before it was broken by Sachin Tendulkar in December 2005.

Sunil was also the first person to score centuries in both innings of a Test Match three times. Sunil Gavaskar was widely admired for his technique against fast bowling, with a particularly high average of 65.45 against the West Indies Cricket Team, which had the most vicious bowling attack during the 1970-80s era.

The Little Master also holds the elite record of playing most consecutive Test Matches for Team India. He is the only Indian to date to playback to back 100 Tests.

Gavaskar is a recipient of the Indian Civilian honours of the Padma Shri and the Padma Bhushan. He was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame in 2009. In 2012, he was awarded the Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award for Cricket in India.

Sunil Gavaskar might have called time on his international career in 1987, but still, he holds a special place in the hearts of the cricket admirers. But the aforementioned things are something many of us are aware of Sunil Gavaskar.

So on the occasion of Sunil Gavaskar’s 72nd birthday, here we present you five unknown facts about our beloved ‘Little Master’

1. Almost switched at birth

Sunil Gavaskar who was born with a birthmark near his ear was almost switched at birth with a fisherwoman’s baby.

His uncle who had visited Sunny earlier had spotted the birthmark on him but during his second visit, he did not find the mark in the baby sleeping in Sunny’s crib. After searching out their localities, His uncle finally managed to locate the real Sunny who was in a fisherwoman’s crib.

2. Gavaskar – The Actor

You will be surprised to know that Sunil Gavaskar has played the lead part in a Marathi film, ‘Saavli Premachi’. He also played a guest role in a Hindi film “Maalamaal” in 1988. He has also sung a Marathi song “Ya Duniyemadhye Thambayaala Vel Konala”.

3. The Writer Side of Sunil Gavaskar

Gavaskar has tried his hand in writing and has written four books named, Sunny Days, Runs in Ruins, Idols, and One Day Wonders.

4. A Unique Haircut

As Bizzare as it may sound, Sunil Gavaskar remains of the rarest cricketers crickets who got a haircut from the umpire during the course of a match. Batting against England in Old Trafford in Extremely windy conditions in 1974, Gavaskar was miffed with his hair blocking his sight.

As a result, Gavaskar then asked the umpire Dickie Bird to trim his hair while the match was on. He then went on to score 101 runs in that innings.

5. Why Gavaskar Named his Son “Rohan Jaivishwa “?

Gavaskar has named his son ‘Rohan Jaivishwa’ as a tribute to his three favourite cricketers – Rohan Kanhai, ML Jaisimha, and Gundappa Vishwanath.

On his birthday, NLC Wishes the Greatest Indian Batsman Who has graced the game, Sunil Gavaskar a fantastic year ahead.

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